TaintedLogic's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[(REVISED) Tréstor - Swingin' Through Town]

I like the gritty bass at the beginning. The rhythmic content is fun, and the instrumentation helps sell the kind of nu-funk aspect of the piece. Aspects of the texture are a bit cliched, like the descending bass line at :34. I also think the drums (especially the kick) could’ve been a bit louder in the mix. More compression might help, and you may even want to add a limiter to the kick as a final step. There were times when the instrumentation sounded a tad harsh in the mix, too, like at 1:03 - just a lot of high-frequency tones that should be equalized a bit more carefully. The mix is pretty loud and well-balanced, though. I liked the structure of the piece too. Stripping away the drums at :49 was a good idea. After a time, the piece gets pretty repetitive, though. There also isn’t a lot of prominent melodic content in this piece. Fun riffs, sure. But none of these lines really stick out in the texture, and a lot of them have more of a rhythmic or harmonic appeal (as opposed to a melody that really shapes the harmonic progression by itself). That said, one of my favorite aspects of the piece was the sound design and mood. You’ve really sold the blissful retro vibe of the track, albeit with an electronic twist. Overall solid work, Syzion!

8/10

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.5/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.25/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
8/10

[Lunatic]

I like the drama at the beginning. That bass bomb contrasts well with the atmosphere. The strings sound lovely, and then I like how the more hard-hitting and melodic elements of the piece get integrated into the section at :38. The vocals at 1:15 are really nice, too. The mix is loud and clear, although the panning seemed a tad heavy at times. The composition doesn’t sound too dynamic during the last minute or so of the piece. I think it may have needed another climactic section to tie it together. Otherwise, you really sold the emotion with this track. All of my complaints are minor. Keep up the good work, Subotonix!

9.25/10

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
2/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
9.25/10

[Slime Rancher - Ancient Ruins (SP Cover/Mashup)]

I like the cute piano riff at the beginning, and the section at :11 has a distinct emotional appeal. The melodic content starting at around :40 is beautiful, and the mastering quality is quite good. Everything sounds loud, clear, and well-balanced in the mix. It’s also really satisfying when that piano riff comes back at a higher register at 1:14. I liked the airy, atmospheric part at 1:36 too. Up to that point, the energetic progression of the piece hadn’t sounded very dynamic. Once again, that section at 1:36 doesn’t have a lot of shape once the section starts. The harmonies especially don’t develop very quickly at all, and instead you simply transition into another section entirely at around 3:35. You’ve integrated what I assume are the 3 pieces of the soundtrack you’re covering quite well, although this piece doesn’t feel like a very coherent whole right now. After 1:35 or so, there’s not much energy in the track, and while there is a lot of emotional content, I can’t help but feel like you haven’t really maximized the dynamic range of the piece. The structure also feels a bit disjointed, as I alluded to earlier. That said, those compositional details are probably my main concerns with the piece. The atmosphere is beautiful, the melodic content is pleasant, and the production here is quite admirable. Keep at it, SplatterDash!

Mixing, mastering, and balance
2/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
8.25/10

[Derp Gun]

I like the smooth atmosphere at the beginning. The instrumentation is pretty strong, too, although I thought the drum samples at :27 were not great. The hat sound very generic, and the drums are too loud and punchy for the beautiful ambient music in the background. The breaks at 1:29 came out of absolutely nowhere, and you oscillate between between the tranquil ambient sounds and hard-hitting breaks without warning. This makes for a very jarring effect on the listener. Besides the drops, there’s very little harmonic variety from the ambient part. The second half of the piece sounds almost exactly the same as the first. I can tell you’re a talented producer, as the mixing and mastering are strong here, but you just needed to be a little more subtle in how you structured this piece. The transitions are super abrupt, the composition lacks an overarching sense of direction, and there’s very little sense of conclusion or resolve by the end. Strong production and sound design. Now the composition just needs to have a bit more ebb and flow, and a little less dichotomy of texture. Keep at it, SpinBowNonOfficial!

6.75/10

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
.75/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.25/1
Composite score
6.75/10

[Speakers]

I like the jazzy chords at the beginning and the ghostly atmosphere at :17. The beat sounds nice and crisp at :17, and the sound design is really enjoyable. The melodic content at :50 is beautiful. I think there may be a tad too much reverb in texture, and there’s also a bit of atonality here and there. That said, the mastering quality is really good. The mix is loud and clean (despite the excess reverb), and the texture sounds quite well-balanced. I also liked the structural variety you incorporated, starting with the short breakdown at 2:24. I really like how the energy picks back up towards the end with the string solo at 3:12. Texture is really full, but still sharp and punchy with the drums. Overall, this is a really admirable piece with some really cool sound design and melodic content. The violin sounds a little inauthentic in its higher range, but that’s certainly my only complaint about the sound design. Composition and production are strong as well. Keep up the good work, Spectronoid97!

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
9.25/10

spectronoid97 responds:

HEY MAN! Thanks for your review, I greatly appreciate it!!
Yeah, mixing is one of my main enemies when it comes to music making, because my computer can't handle a lot of things happening at the same time or my CPU starts bitching, but I try my best hahaha. And also the violin part sounds a little too computerish because I don't own any VSTs or libraries for orchestral instruments (or anything at all really hahaha). But thank you so much for letting me on the next round of the competition! I'll outdo myself, at least I hope I do. xD

[Heroic Duel v.3]

I like the apprehensive mood at the beginning and the build-up into :27. The quality of the instruments is not great (they sound really inauthentic), but they suit the cinematic style of the piece well. There’s some cool melodic content in this piece, especially towards the end (2:19 and on). For the most part, though, the composition has a lot of transitory content without many cathartic sections to resolve the climaxes. I think that’s my main compositional complaint with the piece. As for the production, I think the mix relies excessively on panning (equalization and compression are usually second to none in any well-balanced mix), but overall things sound clean and distinct. Overall, fun piece. I love the cinematic vibe here! Keep at it, Spcialist. :)

7.75/10

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.25/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7.75/10

[Drowning in thought]

The clicks and ambient noise at the very beginning sound a tad harsh, and the moving notes at :20 come in rather suddenly. I like the sound design during the harmonic part a lot, though. I think the drums sounded a tad dry until 1:01, when they sounded almost too wet. There’s very little harmonic progression until the (also sudden) transition at 1:22. I like the more tranquil re-entry of the guitar-like instrument at 1:42. The mood and atmosphere of the piece are probably my favorite elements of the piece. That said, I think the texture needed a bit more fill for much of the piece and the transitions need some serious work to smooth them over. The production is pretty strong, though. The excessive reverb doesn’t compromise the quality of the mix noticeably, and overall everything was pretty well-balanced. The rhythmic content in the percussion is really creative towards the end, but the piece cuts off very suddenly. I’m really torn about this piece, because the emotion and atmosphere are totally there and the production is solid, but there are a lot of weak compositional elements that detract from my enjoyment of it. Overall, you’re clearly a talented producer. I just think the piece needs a bit more work on the transitions, textural fill, and phrasing. Keep at it, SentientZero!

7.25/10

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.75/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.5/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1/2
Instrumentation and sound design
1/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.5/1
Composite score
7.25/10

Mel responds:

Thanks lol I put the crackles and abrupt transitions purposely. I made this on my phone and I wanted it to have sort of a weird vibe. Almost like making a huge decision. Thanks for everything

[Subliminal Connections]

I like the sub-bass and tranquil eastern-sounding instrument at the beginning. The panning on the instrument at :08 was a little strong for my tastes, especially since there’s relatively little else going on in the texture. I really like the atmosphere from around :45 on, though. The drums are strong, and the reverb, while a bit excessive, doesn’t appear to detract from the mix too much. The sound design and progression are a bit experimental at times, but I like the subtle elements of atonality you snuck in there at places, like 2:03. That said, there isn’t much melodic content here (until around 4:50), which is probably one of my big complaints. There are large sections of this piece that sound quite minimalistic, although there’s a great ebb and flow to the texture. The piece ends rather abruptly, but I really like the extended high-energy section during the last minute or so, lengthy though it was. Overall, I’d say that if this piece was mixed and mastered in mono (i.e., without so much heavy panning) and there was a tad more harmonic depth at times, it’d be a 5-star track. The sound design (while a bit generic at times) was really fun, and the atmosphere of the piece is just gorgeous. Keep up the good work, Primallightmusic!

8.25/10

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
1.25/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.5/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.75/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1.5/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
1/1
Composite score
8.25/10

[Bolero of the Hero]

I like the serene mood at the beginning. The instrumentation fits the thematic content very well, but sounds very inauthentic. The mixing is also pretty quiet. I’d suggest adding some compression and volume level adjustment to help create a thicker and fuller texture of sound. The melodic content here is really nice, and the harmonic progression of the piece is quite pleasing. The energy of the piece sounds pretty uniform throughout, though. I’d suggest adding some dynamic contrast, phrasing, and automation to give the composition a little more ebb and flow over time. That’ll help keep the piece more engaging for your listener. I also think you could’ve done a bit more with the percussion. Right now, it’s used very sparsely, but it has the potential to give the piece a lot more energy and drive where appropriate. Overall, you clearly have a good sense of harmony and progression. That said, some of the compositional elements here could use a little more fleshing out to maximize the emotional qualities of the piece, and the mixing also needs work. Keep at it, PomicStone!

7/10

Mixing, mastering, and balance
1.25/2
Structure, transitions, phrasing, and variety
.75/1.5
Melody, tonality, harmony, and texture
1.75/2
Instrumentation and sound design
.5/1
Emotion, atmosphere, and catchiness
1/1.5
Originality and uniqueness
1/1
Overall (how do the elements above interact?)
.75/1
Composite score
7/10

PomicStone responds:

Thank you for your review!